How Philly Families Will Pay for Harrisburg’s Sins

Here’s something I’m not sure members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives have considered as they goof around on vacation and play games with the future of Philly schools: They’re about to hurt a lot of families in very tangible ways.

• If schools don’t open on time, tens of thousands of schoolchildren are going to need something to do.

• Parents of many of those kids will pay to put their children in child care for the duration. But child care isn’t cheap — it can cost upward of hundreds of dollars a week, and thousands of dollars a month, to keep kids somewhere safe and occupied. This is no small concern.

Which is to say nothing of the thousands of teachers, administrators, and classified staffers who will sit home without getting paid. Or the impact on the education of every student stuck in limbo. Philly is about to pay a terrible price.

There’s an old saying: “Bad planning on your part does not create an emergency on my part.” But bad planning on the part of our leaders in Harrisburg is about to create a real crisis in Philadelphia.

Here’s the thing, though: I’m not entirely unsympathetic to their reasons for delaying action. No, it’s not quite right that they should give Philadelphia a tool — the cigarette tax — to aid its schools while leaving needy districts in the rest of the state without new help. No, it’s not fair that many districts have raised property taxes to try and make up for funding shortfalls. And yeah, from Philly’s perspective, a cigarette tax is a relatively short-term funding solution for a district in need of a long-term fix — a “hollow victory” as Patrick Kerkstra puts it; one that lets the state off the hook for its financial responsibilities to the schools.

The problem: All of this was knowable — was known — at the beginning of the legislative session.

All of this was knowable — and known — when legislators passed a budget last month and went home.

So now? Now isn’t the time to be talking about long-term fixes and fairness or unfairness. Right now, the greatest possible good consists of one duty and one duty only:

Making sure the school doors open on damned time.

From where I stand, authorizing the cigarette tax as soon as possible looks like the best, maybe only way to get that accomplished. If legislators then want to immediately set about working on a long-term fix that pleases them more greatly, nothing could be finer.

Unless that happens, schools activist Helen Gym is probably right to appraise the current situation as a “purposeful act of cruelty and neglect” to Philadelphia, its public schools, and the families that depend on them. Harrisburg had a chance to fix this. It is choosing to throw that chance away. Philly families will pay the price — literally.

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I don’t understand why property taxes aren’t enough to fund the schools? If it’s not enough, raise property taxes. And make sure the delinquents pay!

The Real Richard Cranium

The taxes are fine as is. The problem is that there are far too many people who don’t pay them and it takes the City forever to decide to do anything about it. Once the City does decide to do something, the Courts have to stick their thumbs in the pie and will reduce the costs/fines/etc and put the person on a payment plan, which just delays the process further. Additionally, you have these clowns on Braod Street making six figures. Chop down those salaries and get the taxes that people aren’t paying and you are going to be a-ok.

murdog

How about we look at the real problem the democratic admnistration past and present and the teachers union who continue to line their pockets. Every year there is a financial crisis, more money is pumped in and the children continue to be functional illerates and the teachers union continues to line their pockets. At what point is enough enough. Lets look at the waste in city hall and city council. Why do they need a car and driver to take then to and from work and as some have seen fit to transport their children and neighbors children to school (I forgot when they get caught they receiver a wavier) Lets send out mayor to Paris again to review the success of their shared bike ride system. Does anyone really think this will work in our city, the bikes will disappear faster than you could say Philadelphia crime and corruption. Parents should also take some responsibility, why do the taxpayers have to provide free meals and transportation for their children. I worked two and sometimes three jobs while I went to college at night so that I could afford a good education and life for my family Something that too many of the parents in this city don’t care about.

murdog

Helen Gym should wake up and smell the coffee and direct her anger towards the real villians, but i guess it easier to blame everything on Harrisburg

murdog

Its not how will Philly families pay for Harrisburg’s sins it how will the taxpayers of Philly will pay. There is a great distinction. Also Joel do you ever point out the shortcomings of the current and past democratic administrations or are you just a lapdog for the democrats

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